Increase in Frequency

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There seem to have been a lot of things that have made their way on to the blog recently. I certainly can’t complain since I guess it means there have been lots of fun things going on for me to do. The result is that the blog has got a bit backed up with posts getting scheduled to go out quite a long way off as a result of the number of things ahead of them.

Consequently, I am going to experiment with increasing the rate of posts for a while. Instead of every other day, they are going to be daily for a while. We shall see whether this gets the backlog down a bit in which case I might take the frequency back down a bit or whether I can sustain this number of posts. Who knows but for a while, expect a few more posts than before. Don’t count on the quality improving – just the quantity!

Mono Lake Selfie Guy

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Normally I don’t post pictures of other people unless they know about it. However, this guy is a worthy exception. Our visit to Mono Lake was later in the day and everything was looking particularly cool in the early evening light. There were plenty of photographers enjoying the scenery as well as visiting families. One view looked great and, while a family was in the shot, it looked like they would soon move on. Another photographer had a similar idea and was standing next to me.

There was one other person in the shot. However, he didn’t move off with the family. Instead, he took a couple of selfies. Fair enough. Then he took some more. Okay, no big deal. Then he whipped off his shirt and started taking some more. This was a little more odd. Each time you thought he was done, he would reposition to take more shots of himself sans shirt. We were wondering whether he was ever going to be done.

After a while of waiting for this, I figured he was so keen on himself being photographed, I would oblige. A quick few shots of the master at work seemed a necessary reminder of one of the stranger elements of our visit.

Tioga Pass Lakes

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The Tioga Pass has a nice selection of water courtesy of the various damming activity that has gone on. I have been this way before and that made its way on to the blog here. The color of the water is great. Whether this is because it is clear water or a function of the light at this altitude I don’t know but it looks great. Having lakes surrounded by such impressive peaks makes the place seem like it has been created for postcard manufacturers. I just think it is great. The sun reflecting off the surface certainly enhances the look.

Mountain Bikers

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Riding the gondola to the top of Mammoth Peak, we were sharing the ride and the mountain with a lot of mountain bikers. As we rode up we could see a steady stream of them zipping down the trails, some more speedily than others. Shooting through the Perspex of the gondola was not ideal but it was fun to try and get shots of them as they passed close underneath us. Here are some bikers having fun!

Tuolumne Meadow Widlife

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As we were driving back past Tuolumne Meadows on the return journey through the Tioga Pass, Nancy saw something moving out in the grass. Fortunately we were very close to a pull off so we hopped out. She grabbed the binoculars and I grabbed the camera. It was a coyote strolling around on the hunt for a snack. He was heading roughly towards us which looked promising. Sadly, a family next to us decided to try their best wolf howls since they seemed to think that this would in some way help the situation.
The coyote clearly decided that a better idea was to head off in the other direction and I shared his assessment. However, before we moved on, I took a quick scan across the meadow and saw a small herd of deer. At this time of year, it doesn’t take much to work out who the males are!

Olmsted Point

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A previous trip across the Tioga Pass had taken me to Olmsted Point and I did post about that here. Nancy hadn’t been before so it was fun showing her the spot for the first time. Like me, she was amazed how many people never left the parking area and discovered the better views after only a short stroll (or what counts as a stroll at that sort of altitude). Even when people are there, you still feel like you have the place to yourself.

Last time I was there, it had been a bit hazy. This time it was a bit clearer which was good. The nice thing about Olmsted Point is that, despite the lengthy road journey from the valley, you are actually very close to the same place and you have a nice perspective on Half Dome. Being there earlier would help from a lighting perspective because things are starting to be a bit backlit but it is still a lovely view.

Tuolumne Grove

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A trip into Yosemite means a chance to see some big trees. I had originally thought about a trip to Mariposa Grove like the one I posted about here. However, coming in over the Tioga Pass makes for a long trip to get to Mariposa so, instead, we decided to head to the Tuolumne Grove instead. While perhaps not as extensive, it is still a nice spot and, courtesy of being a bit more out of the way and involving a walk of about a mile, it is a lot less busy.

The trees are always cool to see. I always find it funny how the large firs start to make you wonder whether they are the big trees until you do see a sequoia at which point you realize just how big the big guys are. One other feature of Tuolumne Grove is the tree with the road cut through it. I should point out that this sort of vandalism is appalling. The idea of hacking out the bottom of a huge tree so people can go through it is really nuts. However, now that it is done, you do see something quite unusual. I hope lessons have been learned though.

The view as you look up is one of the fun things about trees that are tall and very straight. They converge above you in a way that is quite dramatic.

Scale is something that is always hard to portray in photos. People are a good way of getting some perspective on this. Most of the time you try and get the shots with no one there. Best to try both and then go with which one works best. Of course, you can include your wife and just get a shot that you like anyway!

Traversing the Sierras

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The trip to Mammoth meant a drive across Route 108 across the Sierras. This was a road I hadn’t used before. The climb was significant reaching almost 10,000′ at the high point of Senora Pass. Most of the time we were just driving along. However, we did come across a sign for Donnell Lake and thought that might be worth a look and stretching the legs is always welcome on a long driving day.

The lake itself is set down a long way in the valley and the road led to an overlook area. This was just fine. The lake is a really intense color which I guess I would describe as a combination of sky blue and green. It certainly catches the eye. In fact, it had recently caught my eye when I was flying east. I had looked down from a flight at another dammed lake. Just below us at the time I had seen the dam and this greenish lake so it was quite a surprise to find ourselves right by it.

A couple of people were leaving just as we arrived and they were the only souls we saw. The place was ours after that. The location meant you could see where the dam was but couldn’t really get a sense of it. However, the rest of the view was lovely and well worth a stop if you are heading across this way.

Oakland Airport BART Connector

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Until this weekend, the connection between BART’s Coliseum Station and Oakland Airport was a bus service called AirBART. It was $3 and was reasonably frequent and didn’t take too long provided you times it well. However, it wasn’t the easiest connection. Consequently, a rail connection has been built. I won’t get into the doubling of price for the ride. That can wait to another day. However, Friday 21st was the day in which the commissioning ended and the first public access was given. There were free rides for the public before formal service opened on the following day.

I went along to check out the system. It is a cable operated vehicle which runs automatically. There is a station connected by escalators to the existing BART station at one end and the other end is in the parking lot at the airport. Halfway along the track (which is elevated for a large portion of the journey and at ground level or underground for a section) is the maintenance facility and power source. Here the train briefly stops as it changes from the cable for one half to the cable for the other. The stop is quite brief.

I filmed the operation during the demonstration runs and you can see how the system looks below. Now we shall see how much use it gets!

Inside Bodie Buildings

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While you are not allowed inside most of the buildings at Bodie, you can walk right up to the windows to take a look inside. This is one of those times when photography can really help. The windows are not cleaned so there is a layer of dust and grime on them. With bright sunlight above, it is hard to get a good view of the inside. However, a wide angle lens pressed right up against the glass, possibly including a spare hand to cover a particular reflection, means that you get a far clearer view. A little tweaking of the contrast in Lightroom and the interior shots look far better than what you recall seeing.

Consequently, I was able to see a lot more of what was inside some of the buildings when we got home. Whether it was disused beds decaying, ceilings coming apart or the interior of a schoolroom, you could see a lot of what was left behind. Some of the buildings showed a great deal of what had been there before. The dining and pool tables in the hotel, the exercise equipment at the Oddfellows Hall or the shelves in the shop all told a story of a life long gone.